No, it’s not something from the minds of Pixar: the image above is of Pipebots, micro robots designed to inspect buried pipes, water pipes in particular.
Just 20mm wide, Pipebots are the brainchild of a team from the universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds and Sheffield, with the support of utility companies, industry bodies and ultimately backed by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
Equipped with on-board sensors and cameras, the Pipebots can locate, diagnose and scan potential faults and relay the data wirelessly to a human engineer on the surface. Decisions are then made to deploy a repair team – only when and exactly where it's needed.
The Pipebots can walk and swim.
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